International connections: Italy at the heart of the European grid

Now more than ever, energy security is synonymous with the economic, political, and social security of Europe as a whole. International instability, which has been exacerbated by conflicts — most notably in Ukraine — has led to a heightened risk of crisis. Europe must respond swiftly by accelerating the green transition while simultaneously expanding and modernising its network of interconnections.

Just like the TEN-T network, linking the capital cities of the Union via high-speed trains, energy interconnections are also essential to reduce prices and increase the security of supply. It’s little wonder then that twelve European countries, including Italy, presented a position paper to the European Commission in October 2024, supporting the need to create more energy interconnections between the Union’s member states.

The position paper, which was signed by the Energy ministers of the signatory nations, makes the case that “interconnection and cross-border cooperation are key to reducing energy prices, facilitating the energy transition and the functioning of the internal market, and accelerating decarbonisation”.

In Italy, as in other countries across the continent, plentiful interconnections mean that energy can be imported whenever domestic prices are high or when production is insufficient to cover the electricity demand. This enables access to cheaper sources of energy from neighbouring countries, reducing price fluctuations and the risk of blackout. With the production of energy from renewable sources increasing, particularly solar and wind power, which are intermittent by nature, the capacity to import and export energy has become crucial in balancing the grid.

Italy at the heart of the Euro-Mediterranean grid. When you think of the Italian electricity grid, you might picture it as a closed system. In reality, Italy is a crucial intersection within a vast European network, thanks both to its geographic characteristics and to the policies which Terna, the Group that manages the nation’s electricity transmission infrastructure, has pursued for years specifically with a view to the European integration of the grid. Indeed, it’s no surprise that Terna is recognised today as one of Europe’s leading grid operators, playing a decisive role in energy security, market balancing, and ecological transition.

Italy currently has 30 exchange points with other countries, while its 2025 Development Plan sets out a series of infrastructural projects to increase foreign transport capacity by around 40% compared to current values. These connections enable a continuous exchange, allowing electricity to be imported and exported with France, Switzerland, Austria, Slovenia, Greece, Malta, and Montenegro, improving the cost-effectiveness of the service.

In an undertaking of immense importance for both the country and the continent, Terna’s strategy involves strengthening the stability and security of the electricity grid, with a focus on integrating markets through new international interconnections. This will allow the flexible, balanced management of energy resources, facilitating exchanges between national grids and paving the way to the goal of creating an energy market which is integrated at European level and, in the future, an energy hub for the Mediterranean.

Interconnections and renewables: how to manage the transition at international level. The Italian and European grid is undergoing changes to its very core thanks to the contribution of renewable energy. Terna’s data reveal that during the first nine months of 2025, Italy reached over 80 GW of installed power from green sources. Although this energy is essential for the country, its inherent characteristics make it difficult to programme. In this context, the ability to exchange energy takes on vital importance. It means that other grids can provide support with meeting demand whenever the sun goes down or the wind drops, and, on the other hand, that prices and frequencies can be stabilised by exporting energy during times of excess production.

Interconnections don’t just facilitate exchange, they offer a way to manage variability: every overhead, submarine, or overland HVDC (High-Voltage Direct Current) line helps to make the European system more flexible and resistant, capable of absorbing peaks in both production and consumption.

The major electricity routes. At present, high-voltage motorways already criss-cross Europe, connecting the Union’s member states and boosting integration not just in terms of energy, but economically and socially too. Terna itself has a strategic role to play in these projects. Italy and France, for example, are linked by numerous interconnections. Most recently, HVDC technology has been used to connect Piedmont and the French department of Savoie: one of the most efficient power lines in the world, crossing the Alps along a motorway route.

The new interconnection between Italy and Austria, instead, has been active since 2023: a 220 kV underground cable strengthening the connections between the North-East of the country and the Alpine grid. Meanwhile, projects currently under construction include the ELMED connection between Italy and Tunisia (which can exchange solar energy produced in North Africa with Europe) and the doubling of the link with Greece, in addition to new connections with the Balkans. All this infrastructure will contribute to Italy’s transformation into a Euro-Mediterranean hub capable of exchanging energy with central Europe, the Balkans and North Africa.

Towards a European super grid. The Italian system is part of a continent-wide vision promoted by ENTSO-E (the European Network of Transmission System Operators for Electricity), which brings together 40 operators managing a combined 312,700 km of lines and 3,174 TWh in annual exchanges. Its mission, in which Terna is participating, is to guarantee the security of the interconnected electricity system at European level at all times. This favours the development of a grid which can combine market needs and stability, sharing reserves, capacity, and flexibility while supporting the growth of renewables.

Market coupling between operating zones (for example, the coupling launched in 2015 between Italy, France, Austria, and Slovenia) represents a milestone in this integration, based on advancements in a number of major projects. In Europe, initiatives like the North Sea Link, the network connecting Norway with the United Kingdom, the Viking Link between the United Kingdom and Denmark, the COBRA cable between Denmark and the Netherlands, as well as all the other projects supported by Terna which connect Italy with other European nations, are helping to build a true “European Super Grid”.

Looking beyond these borders, a “European Super Grid” is visible on the horizon, which will connect Europe, North Africa, and part of the Middle East. From the solar farms of the Sahara to the offshore turbines in the North Sea, grids across the continent will be able to interact with each other, sharing energy at a low cost and balancing seasonal peaks. Within this major project of continental integration, Italy can once again act as a natural bridge, thanks to its geographical position and dense network of submarine lines.

Indeed, it is with good reason that Terna’s 2025-2034 Development Plan has set out over 23 billion euros in investments, much of which has been earmarked for projects intended to increase the national and international capacity of electricity grids, reducing CO₂ emissions and thus steering the Italian grid towards efficient, interoperable management, capable of full integration with European markets.

In other words, Italy is not just another link in Europe’s energy chain, but a strategic intersection between North and South, between continental Europe and the Mediterranean, a shining example of shared, sustainable, and secure energy. The pillars of this strategy are, once again, the interconnections, grids which enable deep bonds to be forged and which underpin not only the prospering of a continent, but its culture and approach to development too.